ILGA-Europe and TransGender Europe published the first comprehensive report on the experiences of health care by Transgender people in European Union. This report is a result of the largest and most comprehensive data collection on transgender people's lived experienced to date.

In a brutally honest account, Stephanie Butterfield opens her heart and tells what it is like to be a man undergoing trans gender surgery. In her own moving words, she tells LAURA CAROE about her experiences and the sometimes bigoted reaction she faces.

SOCCER superstar Ronaldo cried foul when three hookers he booked turned out to be BLOKES.

[Pakistan]LHC allows woman to change sexThe Lahore High Court on Tuesday allowed a woman to change her sex and undergo a surgery after the Federal govt and her medical consultants agreed that she was suffering from 'Gender Identity Disorder' that required a surgery.

[USA] [Blog/Film] Hot Docs Review: Be Like OthersExcerpt: But it is more complicated than a transsexual wanting a sex change. In Iran, this matter is complicated because homosexuality is punishable by death, and transgendered lifestyles are not an option. However, sex changes are not only permitted legally -- they are also subsidized by the government. It is this strange path of religious, political, and social ruling that Eshaghian focuses on in Be Like Others. She does not argue the particulars of this strange rationale, but rather shows the life and world of those who live it -- lives that reveal a flawed and chilling system for dealing with differing gender preferences and sexuality.

terça-feira, abril 29, 2008

Excerpt: 5) As a transsexual woman, I can't help but notice how dependent this ad is on the concept of "drag"— that is, the fact that the subject in the video identifies as a boy and that their feminine gender expression is depicted as a "performance" or an "impersonation." The commercial would have an entirely different meaning (and would evoke a very different emotional reaction) if it featured a trans woman who fully and unapologetically identified as female. For this reason, this video will likely annoy a lot of transsexuals because it forwards the "trans = fake" trope that is too often used to marginalize us.

[International] [News/Commentary] The Global Struggle for Queer FreedomJamaican AIDS activist, Steve Harvey, was shot dead by a gang of men who burst into his home in late 2005. Soon afterwards, Nokia Cowen drowned when he jumped into Kingston harbour to escape a violent homophobic mob. A few weeks later, Jamaica's trade ambassador Peter King was found dead with his throat slashed and multiple stab wounds. Then the mutilated bodies of two lesbians were found dumped in a septic pit behind the house they shared.[Brasil] Travesti acusa atacante Ronaldo de não ter pago possível programaDefinitivamente, a fase de Ronaldo não é das melhores. Isso porque o atacante do Milan, da Itália, está sendo acusado pelo travesti André Luis Ribeiro, mais conhecido como Andréa Albertine, de não ter pago um programa feito na madrugada desta segunda.[Kyrgyzstan] Police storm international meeting for gay rights in KyrgyzstanHuman rights groups have highlighted the plight of the LGBT community in Kyrgyzstan after a police raid on a leading gay rights group.Police forced their way into the premises of the LGBT group Labrys, which was in the midst of hosting a dinner for 30 domestic and international advocates.[Rússia] Ativistas entram com recurso contra proibição da Parada Gay de MoscouOs organizadores da Parada Gay de Moscou apresentaram na manhã de hoje, 28 de abril, um recurso contra a decisão da prefeitura que proibia as manifestações que marcam as comemorações de orgulho gay.[Canada] Winnipeg holds vigil for National Day of SilenceExcerpt: The vigil in Winnipeg was particularly timely because it happened exactly a month after the death of a local transgender woman. Calvin Osborne, who went by the name Rose, was murdered in late March in an apartment suite on Broadway Ave. Rose was the sibling of Helen Betty Osborne, a young Aboriginal girl whose violent death in 1971 left a lasting scar on Manitobans. Although police have not come forward to say the killing was a hate crime, people in the community suspect that Rose's gender identity may have played a role in her death.

Excerpt: The doctors have said that her physical damage will be "indistinguishable from fully recovered" -- which means that unless you both knew her before and knew she was attacked, you're not likely to pick up on a difference once things are done... though Raychel has emailed me venting about how much she hates her physical therapist!

As of today she was able to take 5 unassisted steps!

She's seeing a speech therapist too, to recover from the brain damage she received in that area as well.[USA] Opening The Door To The Inclusion Of Transgender PeopleThe National Center for Transgender Equality and the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force today released a joint publication titled Opening the Door to the Inclusion of Transgender People: The Nine Keys to Making Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Organizations Fully Transgender-Inclusive, geared toward lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) organizations.

There are several things that bug me a lot about this NY Times article on a married couple that stayed together through one partner's transition as a transwoman. There's referring to the transwoman, Denise, by masculine pronouns and her birth name to reference past events where she did identify as female but had not yet had sexual reassignment surgery. There's the very equation of surgery with transition — one is accepted as a woman only through virtue of a vaginoplasty, not only with regards to the law, but also in terms of how her gender is treated by the newspaper (and vice versa for a transman). Since not all transgender people choose to have surgery, and since not all people determine their very identity based off of their genitals, it's insulting and obnoxious, and a big part of the problem that the paper is trying to examine. (Not to mention how the story is run, of course, in the Fashion and Style section.)

I've been called a lot of things, believe me. But "too black" has never been one of them, by any stretch of the imagination. So, I was initially amused when I read that The Bilerico Project — where I'm a regular contributor — has been accused of being "too black" and "too transgender."

Actor WILLIAM BALDWIN has launched a stinging attack on his younger brother STEPHEN's opposition to equal rights for same-sex couples. Usual Suspects star Stephen, 41, is the only Republican member of the famous family, and his siblings despair of his conservative views. Eldest brother, Democrat Alec, has attempted to change Stephen's mind in the past, and he now has 44-year-old William on his back.

[India]Eunuchs demand job quota, protectionEven as the OBC quota heat refuses to settle down, eunuchs have raised the demand for reservation in jobs. Following the Bihar and Tamil Nadu governments' decisions to give them job protection, the eunuchs in Maharashtra have put the demand for jobs and protection against violence by public and police.[Canada] Coming out the hardest part for cross-dresserAmanda Ryan is a 55-year-old male sales rep, father of two, and a cross-dresser.

[NJ, USA] Through Sickness, Health and Sex ChangeExcerpt: But it is not exactly the same union, as evidenced by their marriage certificate, which they have enlarged to poster size to make the point. The original, from 1980, listed Donald Brunner as the bridegroom and Frances Gottschalk as the bride. But a sex-change operation in 2005 turned Donald into Denise. Fran stood by her spouse, and the couple secured an amended certificate, putting "Denise" next to "bridegroom" for lack of other options.Photo: Sylwia Kapuscinski for The New York Times HERE AND NOW Fran and Denise Brunner had children when Denise, center left, was Donald.

[USA] [Blog/Commentary]Today's BattleOver at the Massachusetts Eagle Tribune, where a local legislator would prefer to see transsexual prisoners die, even if keeping them alive is a lot less expensive:"I want to put into the law something that there is fairly widespread agreement on," Tarr said yesterday. "That this is a procedure that shouldn't be paid for, especially when the budget is tight and the Department of Corrections is strained to perform basic functions."

[USA] [Blog/Commentary]Barney Won't Talk To UsNever let it be said I didn't give it my best effort.During a surprise call-in during my March 6th show featuring Donna Rose, Joe Racalto, an aide in Congressman Barney Frank's office, suggested I contact him to set up an interview with Congressman Frank to discuss ENDA and the issue of transgender rights in general. Of course, I was interested. I contacted Joe soon afterward and began the process of requesting and setting up the interview. Unfortunately, it seems Joe overestimated the willingness of his boss to speak directly to the transgender community and enter into the kind of dialog with us that he's advocated publicly for so long.

[USA] [Blog/Commentary]Starting From Scratch:The Death of United ENDA Part IIEssentially it's business as usual for HRC. Nothing has substantially changed in their lobbying efforts. They've had no "'rehabilitative" ' moment or change of heart. If you take Keisling's words to heart, the only other conclusion that seems logical is that United ENDA is dead.

On June 27, 1969 a group of men rioted following a police raid on the Stonewall Inn, a Gay bar at 43 Christopher street New York city. The late Miss Stephen Whittaker a transgender rights activist and founding member of both the Gay Liberation Front and the Gay Activists Alliance, is credited by many as the first to actually strike back at the police and, in so doing, spark the rebellion. Further protests and rioting continued for several nights following the raid. The Stonewall riots are generally considered to be the beginning of the modern gay rights movement.

Students from some 6,000 middle and high schools are taking part today in the 12th annual National Day of Silence to bring attention to anti-lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender name-calling, bullying and harassment.

Lesbian politico Tammy Baldwin schooled her Congressional colleagues on Day of Silence this morning. Speaking on the House floor, Baldwin chatted about how 500,000 students are shutting their mouths to break the silence on anti-gay bullying.

Americans For Truth (AFTAH) President Peter LaBarbera today called on schools, the media and opinion-makers to "break the silence" regarding the serious health risks of homosexual behavior, and said Americans deserve an official government investigation into the matter.

As you may know, today is the 12th Annual National Day of Silence, an annual observation in which students across the country take a vow of silence to bring attention to anti-lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) harassment faced by individuals in schools.

Sources connected to the show have just confirmed to me that we probably won't be seeing as much of the divine Ms. Rebecca Romijn as glamazon transsexual Alexis Meade on Ugly Betty next year. I'm told she's going from a series regular to a recurring character, and this change in status was not her own doing but rather the producers' decision.

[USA] [Books] New Facial Feminisation Surgery book By Douglas Ousterhout

A practical guide to facial-feminization surgery for the male who is transitioning to female, this book focuses on a pioneering form of cosmetic surgery that reshapes the male facial structure. Dramatic before and after photographs and detailed illustrations of each surgery show how reconstructive surgery recontours the brow and nose ridge, reduces the size of the jawbone and chin, and reshapes the trachea to eliminate the Adam's apple.

Available from www.amazon.com [Note: This title has not yet been released. You may pre-order it now.]

Dionysius and Koothandavar may have been kindred souls. As the annual Koovaagam festival drew to a close on Tuesday night, the tiny village in Villupuram was swarmed by 25,000 to 35,000 people, according to police estimates, as transgenders and men alike queued up to be married to Lord Aravan. More than 100 police officers handled the crowd.

Get ready for the campus to be a little quieter. On Friday, April 25, students at Saint Mary's College of California will join students across the nation in a Day of Silence to protest the bullying, harassment and name-calling faced by lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex and ally (LGBTQIA) youth every day.

Excerpt: Any reasonable person would side with the GLSEN in opposing name-calling, bullying and harassment. These behaviors are unacceptable for any reason. The divergence comes when the GLSEN and others try to change our vocabulary on what defines sexual identity and acceptable behavior.

Expressing her support for the gay, lesbian and transgender (LGBT) community, Congresswoman Lois Capps spoke to House representatives yesterday to commemorate this year's National Day of Silence to the death of Lawrence King, the 15-year-old Oxnard student who was shot at E.O. Green School on February 12 and died on February 15. Since King was gay and it appears that his sexuality prompted his murder, prosecutors have been treating the case as a hate crime. Capps' district includes both Santa Barbara and Oxnard.

Queer performance takes on an international slant this weekend, as trans choreographer-led Jin Xing Dance Theatre appears at Stanford University's Memorial Auditorium. Jin, a former colonel in the Chinese army, is the first transwoman to be recognized as a cultural pioneer in China. In Germany, Die Zeit (The Times ) has called Jin "probably the world's best dancer."

quinta-feira, abril 24, 2008

[Isle of Man] Transsexual to be recognised under new Manx lawTRANSSEXUAL people will have their acquired gender recognised in law under draft legislation.The Gender Recognition Bill 2008, published on Wednesday, is based on similar legislation introduced in the UK following a judgment of the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg in cases brought against the UK.[Turkey] Judge Postpones; Experts Defy Gay Association Closure CaseExcerpt: Soyle also commented on the police raiding the offices of the association last week."The police started monitoring the association after they received a notice claiming that the association is engaged in prostitution, " said Soyle."They saw that transvestites and transsexuals entered the association and so they raided the offices with a search warrant. However, the name of the association is Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transvestite Transsexual Solidarity Association. .. Of course we were saddened by the raid."[South Africa] 'Township lesbians too scared'Human rights groups say that lesbians in Khayelitsha are too frightened to picket and protest outside the trial of nine men who stand accused of beating 19-year-old Zoliswa Nkonyana to death more than two years ago.[India] Transgender census soonTAMIL Maiyam, an organization Chief Minister M Karunanidhi' s daughter and Rajya Sabha MP Kanimozhi is closely associated with has been commissioned to undertake a census of the numbers and needs of the transgender community in Tamil Nadu, Social Welfare Minister Poongothai Balaji said on Monday.[India]

Começou esta semana no Estado de Tamil Nadu, no sul da Índia, o festival Aravan, o único do país dedicado exclusivamente aos transexuais.Transgenders crown their beautiesTwo drag queens being crowned within half an hour of each other. That too on either sides of a road. This is what happened here on Tuesday during the annual Koothandavar temple festival.

For thousands of transsexuals, the 'eunuch' festival at Koovagam festival, the remote village in northern Tamil Nadu, is surely becoming a nightmare.[Australia] [Blog/Commentary] In Good CompanyExcerpt: Persons who are to be denied passports because it is undesirable that they be allowed to have one include:Australian citizens who are transgender, that is are living in the identity of a member of the opposite sex; and Australian citizens being repatriated or deported to Australia or extradited[Australia] Trans Activist will Be MissedEleanor Lister, transgender rights advocate and general supporter of humanitarian issues, died last week after a long battle with throat cancer.

GLBT advocates have slammed the apparent non-inclusion of trans representatives at the 2020 Summit.

The summit included a number of people championing the cause of gay and lesbian people in Australia, but trans interests appear to have been sidelined, activists claimed.

[MA,USA]Children's Hospital Boston Offers "Sex Change" to AdolescentsEndocrinologist Norman Spack of the Children's Hospital Boston (CHB) is continuing to promote the Gender Management Service Clinic, whose services include giving "transgendered" children puberty-delaying drugs so that they can choose the gender of their body.

A doctor at the renowned Children's Hospital Boston has launched a new program to drug children to delay puberty so they can decide whether they want a male or a female body, according to a report today in the Boston Globe. Pediatric endocrinologist Norman Spack, 64, says he started the Gender Management Service Clinic because he found himself encountering 20-somethings who were "transgendered" and in good shape socially, "but they were having trouble getting their physique to conform to their identity. "I knew the 20-somethings could have better chances of passing if they were treated earlier," he said.[USA/UK] 'N Sync's Lance Bass Films Day of Silence PSA to Help Promote ToleranceStudents from a record 6,000 middle and high schools have registered as participants in GLSEN's 12th annual National Day of Silence on Friday to bring attention to anti-lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) name-calling, bullying and harassment in schools. The event is being held this year in memory of Lawrence King, a 15-year-old from Oxnard, Calif., who was shot and killed in school on Feb. 12 because of his sexual orientation and gender expression.[USA] We didn’t make this upIn 2004, students at Poway High School organized a "Day of Silence," a national youth-run effort using silence to protest the actual silencing of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people due to harassment, bias, and abuse in schools. On the Day of Silence and the following day, Harper wore a t-shirt that said, "Be Ashamed, Our School Embraced What God Has Condemned" on the front and "Homosexuality Is Shameful 'Romans 1:27' " on the back. There was no evidence of any disturbance on the first day, and on the second day, a teacher observed "several students off-task talking about the shirt." It was also alleged that there may have been a "tense verbal conversation" about it, but Harper characterized it and other conversations as "peaceful discussions wherein differing viewpoints were communicated. "[USA] Transgender Inclusion in the Workplace, 2nd Edition"Transgender Inclusion in the Workplace" provides human resource and other employment professionals with best practices for transgender workplace inclusion—from discrimination and benefits policies to internal practices that reflect how gender is expressed and integrated in the workplace—as well as the state of legal issues encompassing gender identity in employment situations.New Human Rights Campaign Foundation Guide Helps Employers Create Fair Policies for Transgender Workers"Transgender Inclusion in the Workplace" Offers Guidance on Policies and Practices to Ensure All Employees are Protected[Blog/News/Commentary] HRC issues second edition of "Transgender Inclusion in the Workplace"The Human Rights Campaign Foundation has released the second edition of its manual on "Transgender Inclusion in the Workplace. Many transgender advocates, including myself, have deep reservations about HRC because of its controversial stance on inclusion of "gender identity" in ENDA. Nonetheless, these reservations do not change the fact that many employers will likely be looking to this document to address transgender inclusion issues, and it deserves comment.

The Human Rights Campaign, a homosexual-activist group, has released a guide for employers that outlines practices for advancing transgenderism in the workplace.

[USA] [Blog/Commentary] The Chatty Cathy Approach to Intersex ActivismExcerpt: I started this technique many years ago in an online support group that Dreger was monitoring even though she never posted. I had noticed that once she started controlling the content on ISNA's blog many years ago that intersex issues were slowly disappearing from the site. I wrote a post entitled, "It's about gender, stupid". The post was not directed to anyone in particular. It was just a general discussion about how gender, especially gender norms, often have disastrous consequences on the everyday lives of intersex people. Not long after that post, maybe a week later, this is what appeared on the home page of ISNA's website."Intersex is not about gender."

[USA] [Blog/Commentary] Pastor Paul Turner’s Response to an invitation to the Atlanta HRC DinnerExcerpt: Does HRC not understand the Transgender community is in real and serious danger? When a house is on fire you don't stand outside and decide whom you are going to rescue, the attempt is made for all.Of course what HRC has forgotten is it was these folks who started the whole "gay rights" movement we know today when they stood toe to high heal with the New York City police department at Stonewall.HRC confidently forgets the Trans community has been with us every step of this bloody fight for our rights, our self worth and our very souls.HRC forgets or ignores that each day when a trans person gets out of bed and steps into the world it may in fact be their last day.[USA] [Commentary] Trans Lobby Day 2008Trans activist Melissa Sklarz reflects on lobby days past and the trans community's new message to the Senate on ENDA: just wait!

[USA] [Blog/Commentary] 'Cause ya know, it's the victim's fault...The defense attorney for the alleged killer in the hate-crime murder of Lawrence King argues it's the victim's fault for not conforming to gender norms.[Blog/Commentary] Gay-panic-esque defense in Larry King trialWilliam Quest, the public defender of the boy who shot Larry King in Oxnard last month, will be trying to move the case to juvenile court and pushing a variant of gay panic.[USA] [Blog/Commentary] We're Trying To Make HRC Better, Not Tear It DownHRC and its defenders has been on a furious spin offensive in the last several weeks.They've been trying to paint its numerous critics like myself as 'transgender conspiracy theorists' and other nastier epithets in other corners of the GLBT blogosphere I won't waste bandwith repeating.[Blog/Commentary] Money Changes (Almost) EverythingRecently, there's been much discussion about how we go forward in dealing with the Human Rights Campaign as a community, where the popular opinion of the greater LGBT community, and probably of nearly all of those who identify as transgender or gender-variant in some way, is that this organization simply cannot be trusted to reflect and advocate in concert with the will of the majority. One of the most common assertions, one I believe has been repeatedly proven conclusively accurate over the last several months, is that HRC's leadership not only simply doesn't get it, but they really show little or no interest in getting it in the future.

According to the St. Petersburg Times this evening, Pinellas County Commissioner Calvin Harris said…

"I don't even know what a transgender is."

According to the SPT, there was no "searing acrimony" involved in the 4-2 vote " to outlaw discrimination based on sexual orientation" and Susan Stanton said about Mr. Harris' statement …

"I think that's a very legitimate … very honest statement," Stanton said. "These are all really good people, and I know none of them would want to discriminate, but they also have to be sensitive to the needs of other people in the workplace."

[España] El ayuntamiento de Sevilla crea un servicio de atención a transexualesEl ayuntamiento de Sevilla creará un servicio de atención especialmente dirigido al colectivo de personas transexuales. El consistorio ofrecerá información y asesoramiento en materia de identidad de género y canalizará las denuncias de casos de discriminación.[Cuba] Transexualismo: el derecho a ser consecuentes con la identidad de géneroRespuestas para quienes se preocupan porque hombres promiscuos se sientan «engañados» si mantienen relaciones con transexuales sin saberlo.[Argentina] Sexualidad ambigua y trastornos que surgen en la niñezLa operación de María, la niña hermafrodita, se realizó a tiempo dado que "recién empezaba a descubrir su sexualidad", indicó especialista en Psicología.[India] A pageant for the third sexExcerpt: It was not just Sujoy and Reema who seized the opportunity to express their transgender identities in a public forum. Over 39 contestants from the city and its surroundings gathered in Eastern Zonal Cultural Centre on Sunday to participate in eastern India's first beauty contest for transgender people, hijras and kothis.[India] TN to create database of transgendersThe Tamil Nadu government on Monday announced creating a database of transgenders in the state."This would be the first such database which would have comprehensive details and would be created with the help of a non-governmental organisation, " Social Welfare Minister Poongothai said in the Assembly.

[USA] [Blog/Commentary] The Denied “Big O” and HRC’s Corporate Equality Index FarceNo, the "Big O" is not about orgasms, or "Oprah," or "Overstock.com." This is about another Big O that is specific to pre-operative male-to-female transsexuals, one called an "Orchiectomy," also called "Orchie" for short. Other words that are used to describe the procedure are; "gelding, neutering" and "orchidectomy." In other words, "castration."[USA] [Blog/Commentary] Cross Dresser Wrecks Lingerie store - Embarrasses us allCongratulations go to Jeremy Paul McIntosh for running his car into a lingerie store and managing to do $3000 worth of damage and embarrass the transgender community. Yes, this recent revenge driven incident has caused some to comment "So, what were they saying about transvestitism and transsexualism not being mental illnesses?'[MA,USA] [Blog/News/Commentary] Children's Hospital Boston Launched Sex Change Program For KidsDr. Norman Spack, who is a pediatric endocrinologist, started a new clinic at Children's Hospital Boston, with the goal of delaying puberty in children so they can decide whether they want a male or a female body.

A post by Gay in Uganda last week reveals the discrimination the country's lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) population faces when applying for travel documents.

Ugandans know a guy called Brenda. A gal, because Brenda is a trans person. Meaning that biologically the birth was to a male baby, but growing up Brenda was more confortable in the female role, and ultimately embraced the female gender.

A doctor at the renowned Children's Hospital Boston has launched a new program to drug children to delay puberty so they can decide whether they want a male or a female body, according to a report today in the Boston Globe.

Pediatric endocrinologist Norman Spack, 64, says he started the Gender Management Service Clinic because he found himself encountering 20-somethings who were "transgendered" and in good shape socially, "but they were having trouble getting their physique to conform to their identity".

As MassResistance has reported in the past, this is going on at the world-renowned Children's Hospital in Boston - not some backwater clinic. This is the elite of the medical profession. And the Boston Globe treats this with clinical nonchalance. This article is so disturbing that it's difficult to say more.

Excerpt: Quest said he believes school administrators supported one student expressing himself and his sexuality — King — and ignored how it affected other kids, despite complaints. Cross-dressing isn't a normal thing in adult environments, he said, yet 12-, 13- and 14-year-olds were expected to just accept it and go on.

Excerpt: Alex Lee, director of the Transgender, Gender Variant and Intersex Justice Project, a group that started working with Lawrence in 2005, said the justice system has treated Lawrence unfairly. The people who have attacked Lawrence in the past have never been found or charged with anything, while Lawrence is going to prison, where Lee said she'll be "a giant target."

Lee pointed to research from the University of California, Irvine that transgender people are 13 times more likely to be sexually assaulted in the state's prisons than non-transgender people. The 2007 study included a random sample of 322 inmates, plus a sample of 39 transgender prisoners.

How many gay, lesbian, transgender, or bi-sexual people do you know? Surprisingly, it may be a higher number than you realize. Why is this? Typically it is a taboo topic - one that, when actually discussed, is met with opposition, fear, anger, and hatred. So how could you expect these individuals to be open about their sexuality? American society hasn't exactly made an inviting and safe environment for this openness.

To The Editor: Lawrence King was up-front on his feelings about being gay. On Feb. 12, 15-year-old Lawrence was shot twice in the head in front of classmates by Brandon McInerney, an eighth grade classmate at Green Junior High School in Oxnard, Calif. He died two days later. McInerney, 14, has been charged with murder as a hate crime. The lives of two families have been altered forever.

To protest the effects that modern-day bullying has on homosexual, bisexual and transsexual people - effects that usually leave victims too frightened to vocalize their beliefs, afraid to be themselves - PSU's Queer Straight Alliance is participating in the National Day of Silence on Friday, April 25.

Ask Andy Guyette about his most trying times as a city commissioner and of course he mentions Steve Stanton. "It was the hardest period of my life outside of my father's death," said Guyette, 50, who resigned last week to take a job in Huntsville, Ala.

Bishkek police carried out a warrantless raid on the community center of an organization working for the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in violation of the right to freedom of association, Human Rights Watch said today.

Merrimack High School will be among dozens of schools throughout the state participating in the Day of Silence, a student-led day of action when some students take a vow of silence to bring attention to the harassment experienced by lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.

Even before 15-year-old Lawrence "Larry" King came out to the few friends he had at E.O. Green Junior High School in Oxnard, Calif., the sweet-faced, slightly built boy endured taunts and anti-gay slurs spewed at him daily across campus, from cafeteria to classroom. As one friend was quoted in the Los Angeles Times: "You'd hear, 'Faggot! Hey, faggot!' That was happening in every class. A lot of teachers knew stuff was going on ... I guess they just didn't want to get involved."

Over 1,000 people rallied outside the state capitol Thursday to promote equality for the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender population in Minnesota. Over 110 cities from across the state attended the rally.